Penticton Concert Band entertains

MITP 04-07-2013 PCB1The Penticton Concert Band opened the arts council’s Music in the Park series with some exciting rhythms, sweet melodies, and stirring harmonies on Thursday July 4 The warm sunny evening at the Oliver Community Stage (Bandshell) attracted a large crowd. The audience had generous applause for the band conducted by Gerald Nadeau.

The first set opened with the Spanish influenced “Ole!”, and continued with some lovely ballads performed by Madison Johnson, including the chestnut, Love’s Old Sweet Song.  Her warm voice was perfectly suited to the slow lyrical melody, evoking the singing style of 1930s radio. She later lent her voice to two medleys from  Moulin Rouge and West Side Story.

MITP 04-07-2013

Under Nadeau’s baton, the band has been improving by leaps and bounds over the years, with a tight, crisp delivery. Nowhere was this more evident than in the challenging Fuego de Alma, with each section solo underscored by syncopated flamenco hand-clapping from other band members. Their rousing Pirates of the Caribbean was another highlight, earning cheers from the audience. Perhaps the  best evidence of audience appreciation was the energetic dancing and leaping of a few young children. One little boy parried and thrust his way through the Pirates score, emulating Captain Jack Sparrow.

MITP 04-07-2013 Mapplebeck

Music in the Park continues every Thursday in July at the cozier venue of the Riverside Patio at the Oliver Visitor Centre (the historic CPR Station). Thursday July 11 is William Leggott on classical guitar. Thursday July 18 brings The Chaca Laca Love Machine with their funk, reggae, and Latin rhythms. This concert is our special Feed the Valley concert, sponsored by Valley First Credit Union. Bring a food bank donation!  Thursday July 25 is Okanagan Divas CindiyDoucette and Mikie Spillett sharing the stage with a mix of country, jazz, pop, and light rock. Every concert runs 6:30 – 8:30 pm. Admission by donation, with a suggested minimum of $3. Every concert has refreshments by donation (bottled water and baked goods) courtesy of Oliver Lioness Club in support of the Chloe Krueger fundraiser.

Scroll down this page to see the August lineup for Music in the Park, plus info about the Michael Burgess concert.

Don`t forget to stop by the Oliver Farmer`s Market in Lions Park on your way to the concert! Great local produce, preserves, and crafts.

Thursdays: 4:00pm-7:00pm
Open from June 27 to Sept 5, Thursdays: 8am-11am, 4pm-7pm.

Photos:

1. Nadeau conducts the Penticton Concert Band while two young audience members move to the music.

2. Pirates of the Caribbean score inspires children to dance

3. Brian Mapplebeck of Oliver performs with the band.

Photo credit: Penelope Johnson

Love Notes to get you in the mood for romance

The Oliver Community Arts Council is passing on a little love note to you from the Penticton Concert Band. Not one you read, but one to listen to.  The band is performing Love Notes on Sunday April 22 at 2:30 p.m. at the Oliver Alliance Church. Tickets are $10 on sale at Sundance Video beginning Tuesday and at the door. Students 17 yrs and under get in free.

“It is all about love,” says Gerald Nadeau, conductor of the Penticton Concert Band,  describing the band’s new repertoire. The concert promises show tunes, jazz standards, pop favourites, Dixie, and even a little opera. Much of the music has a romantic theme.

Several musicals are featured, including Moulin Rouge, Miss Saigon, and Les Miserables, all with heart-wrenching love stories played out against turbulent backgrounds.  A Ray Charles medley includes the romantic Georgia on My Mind, and I Can’t Stop Loving You.  No big band concert would be complete without the lush music of Jerome Kern, famous for ’40s standards Why Do I Love You?,  Lovely to Look At, and The Way you Look Tonight.

Not feeling quite so lovey-dovey? The band promises a cool antidote to the love bug with some Frank Sinatra (The Lady is a Tramp, My Way, and It was a Very Good Year) and a Beatles medley.

And what’s a big band concert without Dixieland? The Penticton Concert Band can’t resist adding several jazz numbers to the programme.  Four much-loved pieces by the incomparable Leroy Anderson will mix romance and plain old fun. In the medley are a romantic Serenata, the clever Syncopated Clock, a sultry Blue Tango, and the whimsical Bugler’s Holiday.

Special guest soprano Madison Johnson fronts the band on several numbers. This lovely young singer performs the show stopper O Mio Babbino Caro by Puccini, and adds her voice to several show tunes including “I Dreamed a Dream”, and “On My Own” from Les Miz, and “One Day I’ll Fly Away” and “Nature Boy” from Moulin Rouge.

Spring is in the air, and so is love. Find someone you like to be with and spend a “lovely” afternoon with the Penticton Concert Band.  You’ll definitely fall in love with the music.

Catch the artistic spirit in Arts and Culture Week

BC celebrates Arts and Culture Week April 22 -28. Oliver’s arts council members are going all out to join in the art-y party! Come celebrate with us  and support the arts.

So, what’s up?

The Oliver Community Arts Council as a whole presents two signature events. One will kick off  the week, and the other will close the celebration. The “opening fanfare” is Love Notes from the  Penticton Concert Band on Sunday April 22 at Oliver Aklliance Church.  Tickets are $10, while students 17 and under are FREE.  The concert features some lush romantic numbers from the musicals Miss Saigon, Les Miserables, and Moulin Rouge, big band ballads by Jerome Kern, and some of your favourite Frank Sinatra.  Lovely young soprano Madison Johnson sings O Mio Babbino Caro by Puccini, as well as some romantic musical numbers.  Several members of the band are from Oliver and the South Okanagan area. Proceeds are split between the Band and the arts council — it’s a great way to support both groups!

The Oliver Sagebrushers‘ exhibit  “Art at the Owl” shows at the guest house of Burrowing Owl Estate Winery  from April 14 – 27.  While the opening reception is Saturday April 14 from 1 – 3 p.m., much of the exhibit and sale falls within Arts and Culture Week. This is always a lovely display at a lovely venue. Winery hours.

The Double O Quilters Guild hosts an “Mini Art Show” at their Open House on Wednesday April 25 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Oliver Community Centre Hall. Oliver has some of the finest fabric artists around, including some national award winners.  You will definitely be wowed! (Note: Opens at 10 a.m., not 9 as listed in the poster.)

Another fsbulous fibre arts group, the Desert Sage Spinners and Weavers Guild celebrate their 35th Anniversary with a Tea and Open House on Thursday April 26. Educational demonstrations and colourful displays will delight you. Light refreshments will be served. In a great artistic collaboration, the Oliver Handbell Ringers will perform during the event. What a delightful pairing of visual and performance arts!

The Oliver Community Arts Council winds up the week with a Spring Arts Faire on Sunday April 29 at the Oliver Seniors Centre. Displays, demonstrations, sales of art and craft in all media , information booths, … and lots more!  Sell, teach, demonstrate, exhibit, perform, sign up new members, — it’s up to you! All your sales are commission-free!  Entry forms are available here: OCAC Spring Arts Faire Entry Form (click once again on the file name on the new page to open file) or by emailing OliverCAC @ gmail.com Non-members of the arts council are also welcome. Deadline for all entry forms is April 13.

Arts and Culture Week is an event co-ordinated by the Oliver Community Arts Council for the promotion of its member artists and in celebration of local arts in general.  We are thankful for the generous sponsorship of Arts BC (Assembly of BC Arts Councils) and its affiliated partners: the Province of BC, the BC Arts Council, Art Starts, and the Community Newspapers Association. We are also grateful for our major local financial sponsors: the Town of Oliver, RDOS, and Oliver Parks and Recreation, for general programming and operating funds.

Sleighbells and Song … and Snow

An enthusiastic but small audience enjoyed the musical variety show, Sleighbells and Song presented by the Oliver Community Arts Council on December 7th at the Frank Venables Auditorium.  A heavy wet snowfall kept many prospective concert goers indoors on Tuesday night, but those in attendance were appreciative. 

Choirs from the Oliver Elementary and Seventh Day Adventist Schools, the  Desert Airs Men’s Chorus and the Advent/Valley Quartet charmed the crowd in the first set. The children’s bright faces and bright voices were an instant hit and a great opener to the show. Some clever choreography, cheerful lyrics, and good rhythms combined to make for a highly entertaining start to the evening.  The Desert Airs impressed with their tuneful a cappella harmonies and crisp musical delivery – and their crisp white shirts. Handsome outfits, gentlemen!  This is a very polished men’s choir who need to have their very own concert — soon, we hope!   The mixed quartet from the Adventist and Valley Congregational churches served as a good counterpoint with some reflective music. Lo How a Rose E’er Blooming and Rise Up Shepherd were especially moving.

The second set featured seasonal music from the Penticton Concert Band. The band began with an audience sing-along  led by soprano Madison Johnson. This young lady has a powerful confident voice that did not need any added amplification.  It was a treat to hear a young person sing in full voice from abdomen, lungs, and head.  No swooping notes, breathy whispering, or pop diva imitations for her.  Brava, Miss Johnson!

The Penticton Concert Band gave an accomplished, rousing performance with good balanced sound from all sections, cohesive playing, and excellent attention to direction.   Their repertoire spanned several centuries of Christmas music and showed off styles varying from Gregorian and Baroque to jazz and pop. Although any band’s volume  could easily overwhelm listeners in an indoor venue — risking amplifying a wrong note, missed cue, or jangly ending — the Penticton Concert Band proved to be very well-rehearsed and easy to listen to, under the competent direction of conductor Gerald Nadeau.

The Oliver Community Arts Council welcomes suggestions for future community Christmas concerts.  Contact olivercac@gmail.com

Have a review of an arts council event or member group performance? Submit it to olivercac@gmail.com

Sleighbells and Song with Penticton Concert Band

Nothing says Christmas like a brass fanfare, children’s voices… and sleighbells. The popular Penticton Concert Band returns to Oliver as the headline act in a musical extravaganza “Sleighbells and Song” on Tuesday December 7 at 7:30 p.m. at the Frank Venables Auditorium.

Conductor Gerald Nadeau returns with his brass and woodwinds ensemble to put everyone in the spirit. Their repertoire spans the centuries with arrangements of traditional carols to the stirring Christmas Overture to the jazzy Santa Does Dixie.

Joining in the celebration are several local choral groups. The audience will be tempted to hum along with the children’s choir from the Seventh-Day Adventist School as they sing the toe-tapping spirituals Mary Had a Baby and Go Tell it on the Mountain, and chime in on Bells in the Steeple.

The Desert Airs, a local men’s a cappella group, will harmonize on Winter Wonderland, White Christmas, and Angels We Have Heard on High. A mixed quartet from the Adventist and Alliance churches perform My Sheep Were Grazing, Lo How a Rose and Rise up Shepherds and Follow.

There will be an opportunity for the audience to sing along with the brass and woodwinds on a couple of popular winter songs.

Host Stephanie Salsnek adds her trademark sparkle and banter to liven up the evening.

Tickets are $10 adults and $5 students, and are available at Handworks Gallery and Sundance Video on Main Street Oliver. The event is presented by the Oliver Community Arts Council.

For more information, photos, reviews and concert dates check out the prencticton concert band website at http://www.pentictonconcertband.ca/

Want to join the band in 2011? info@pentictonconcertband.ca

A Starry Night: Banding Together for the Arts

 

 

On the crisp clear nights of winter, we look up to see cold twinkling stars, close enough to touch. Our eyes and our dreams rise heavenward, to the music of the stars.  “A Starry Night” opens with the Penticton Concert Band performing the Star Wars Medley.

Back on earth we have stars of our own. Composers whose music glitters and sparkles and doesn’t fade with time, evoking the glamour of a bygone age. The Penticton Concert Band plays Gershwin classics guaranteed to put stars in your champagne glass.

Stars of stage and screen are evoked with music by 70’s soft rock band Bread and the film Shaft. Romantic hits like Bread’s “Baby I’m-a Want You” and “Make It with You”  will put stars in your eyes. Composer Isaac Hayes became a star himself, winning the Academy Award for Best Original Song from the Shaft soundtrack.  We’ll hear a medley from the band, including guest R&B guitarist Kyle Anderson (of The Amazing Rubber Band).

Rounding out the first half of the programme is a medley from one of the best loved musicals with “star ” in the title: Jesus Christ Superstar.  Soprano Liz Harris is featured in “I Don’t Know How to Love Him”.

The second half of the concert is dedicated to one special “starry night” , with a number of Christmas favourites ranging from traditional carols to jazzy seasonal numbers.

After you leave the concert… don’t forget to look up at the sky. You’ll sure to be making a wish on one of the brightest stars : that the Penticton Concert Band will be back again soon!

Proceeds from the concert will fund Oliver Community Arts Council programs.  During these economic hard times, the council is especially grateful for this support from another arts organization. We are truly “banding together for the arts”.

Penticton Concert Band presents
A Starry Night
a fundraiser for the Oliver Community Arts Council
Tuesday November 24, 2009
7:30 p.m.
Frank Venables Auditorium. SOSS Highschool, Oliver, BC
$10 Adults     $5 Students (17 and under)
Tickets at Handworks Gallery and Sundance Video, Oliver
“Banding Together for the Arts”